The aim of this presentation is to talk about sustainable food and beverages, and the sustainability of your complete diet both in general and in relation to the New Nordic Diet. In continuation of this, we will introduce life-cycle assessment as a method for measuring sustainability.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Underground plant-associated microbiomes – soil, root, and rhizosphere – are critical to plant health and growth. Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) are being identified and tested to increase crop productivity and improve sustainability. However, the bacteria introduced as PGPB usually do not persist in soils, despite improving plant growth. If PGPB are promoting plant growth without establishing in the environment or plant microbiome, how are they continuing to influence plant growth? To answer this question, a recent study examined the influence of PGPB treatment on pokeweed. The PGPB inocula in this study had little influence on the rhizosphere microbiome assembly and did not colonize the plant roots. Instead, the PGPB induced DNA methylation in the roots. Methylation is an epigenetic mechanism that influences which genes are expressed and is sometimes passed on to offspring..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

This educational project aims at providing a comprehensive picture of food, overcoming the vision of mere production, addressing the issues of environmental sustainability and ecology (chapter 1), health and dietary issues (chapter 2), the world of values cultural, wealth and diversity (Chapter 3) and issues relating to fairness and food safety (Chapter 4).

This series of activities uses the Rio Grande ecosystem to promote systems thinking. The concepts for the activities were developed during the Earth Educators' Rendezvous in 2015. Activities E1-E3 were developed by Diane Doser at the University of Texas at El Paso for in-class and homework assignments for a large section of "Introduction to Environmental Science" for college freshman who are primarily non-science majors. The activities revolve around the middle Rio Grande ecosystem near El Paso, Texas. Activities M1-M3 were developed by Gary Weissman at the University of New Mexico as a series of in-class and field activities associated with a lower division course for environmental science majors. This series of activities explores systems thinking as associated with the Middle Rio Grande in Albuquerque, New Mexico. All activities were designed with multicontext diversity in mind, where some activities tap into 'higher' context approaches and others tap into 'lower' context approaches to understanding a system (see Ibarra 2001 for more details or http://serc.carleton.edu/earth_rendezvous/2016/program/morning_workshops/w7/index.html for workshop information from the Earth Educators' Rendezvous 2016 on this approach to diversity). We also take a place based approach, focusing on the local Rio Grande ecosystem, since place based learning has been shown to aid diverse students in understanding course material (Semken, 2005).

We believe these assignments could be adapted for other settings by having the students observe any local ecosystem that they are familiar with such as a nearby river or stream, forest, meadow, sea shore or lake shore or urban park.

Keywords: system thinking, Rio Grande ecosystem, biogeochemical cycles, multicontextual diversity, place based learning, jigsaw activities

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

An introductory environmental science project tasking students with comparing offshore oil and wind power development.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

Volcanic debris flows (lahars) flow long distances, bury and aggrade river valleys, and cause long-term stream disturbances and dramatic landscape changes. Students will evaluate the nature, scale, and history of past lahars from Mount Rainier in a river valley and interpret the past and potential future impact on humans of lahars.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

This project will allow students to create a mathematical model to help in making decision about replacing HVAC units on a large scale.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

Students are asked to work in teams to find a claim in the media relating to the impact of an organic compound (or class of organic compounds) on the environment and its inhabitants. Their chosen compound should have an effect on the sustainability of plant or animal life, or, in particular, the sustainability of human health.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

EMSC 302 provides an orientation of the Energy and Sustainability Policy (ESP) degree program, preparing students for further study in the five program learning outcome areas: energy industry knowledge, global perspective, analytical skills, communication skills, and sustainability ethics. It also provides an introduction to the basic skills necessary to be successful in higher-ed online learning, including communication and library skills.

Charles Kennel explores how the convergence of earth science, biology, and social science through the use of information technology can lead to continuous awareness of Earth's systems, enabling coordinated responses to the global environmental challenges that face us now and in the future. (58 minutes)

This integrated outdoor-learning, research and reflection exercise gives students a first-hand familiarity with local native plants and their significance in local native societies.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

Students are introduced to the growing worldwide environmental problems that stem from plastic waste. What they learn about microplastics and the typical components of the U.S. water treatment process prepares them to conduct three engaging associated activities. During the lesson, students become more aware of the pervasiveness and value of plastic as well as the downstream pollution and health dangers. They learn how plastic materials don’t go away, but become microplastic pollution that accumulates in water resources as well as human and other animal bodies. They examine their own plastic use, focusing on what they discard daily, and think about better ways to produce or package those items to eliminate or reduce their likelihood of ending up as microplastic pollution. A concluding writing assignment reveals their depth of comprehension. The lesson is enhanced by arranging for a local water treatment plant representative to visit the class for Qs and As. In three associated activities, students design/test microplastic particle filtering methods for commercial products, create mini wastewater treatment plant working models that remove waste and reclaim resources from simulated wastewater, and design experiments to identify the impact of microplastics on micro-invertebrates.

Working in groups, students look at three different villages in various parts of Africa and design economically viable engineering solutions to answer the energy needs of the off-the-grid small towns, given limited budgets. Each village has different nearby resources, both renewable and nonrenewable. Student teams conduct research, make calculations, consider the options and create plans, which they present to the class. Through their investigations and planning of custom solutions for each locale, they experience the real-world engineering research and analysis steps of the engineering design process.

Principles of Marketing teaches the experience and process of actually doing marketing - not just the vocabulary. It carries five dominant themes throughout in order to expose students to marketing in today's environment: Service dominant logic, sustainability, ethics and social responsibility, global coverage, and metrics.

Principles of Marketing teaches the experience and process of actually doing marketing - not just the vocabulary. It carries five dominant themes throughout in order to expose students to marketing in today's environment: Service dominant logic, sustainability, ethics and social responsibility, global coverage, and metrics.

Sustainability challenges organizations to address the implications – and responses – in their own operations and supply chain, products/services/markets, and community responsibilities. This course exposes students to professionals and organizations who are actively working toward making their organizations and industries sustainable.

This course examines the theories and policy debates over who can own real property, how to communicate and enforce property rights, and the range of liberties that they confer. It explores alternative economic, political, and sociological perspectives of property rights and their policy and planning implications.

This course encompasses the study of eating as it affects the health and well-being of every human. Topics include taste preferences, food aversions, the regulation of hunger and satiety, food as comfort and friendship, eating as social ritual, and social norms of blame for food problems. The politics of food discusses issues such as sustainable agriculture, organic farming, genetically modified foods, nutrition policy, and the influence of food and agriculture industries. Also examined are problems such as malnutrition, eating disorders, and the global obesity epidemic; the impact of food advertising aimed at children; poverty and food; and how each individual's eating is affected by the modern environment.